Frequently Asked Questions

How do I Book?

Orders can be taken via the online BOOKINGS form or by phoning 07887781089, 07760242729

or 07763128410.

Orders are taken from 10am Thursdays through to Mondays at 4pm.

We are open over weekends to take bookings, Saturdays 10am – 4pm and Sundays 10am – 4pm. Orders taken during this time are for collection/delivery that week.

The deadline cut off for orders each week is Monday at 4pm, any orders booked after this time will not be processed and will go into the following week.

Please note phone orders will not be taken on a Tuesday or Wednesday.

To book we need complete full addresses for both collection and delivery, including contact telephone numbers for each address, the type of bird/animal, the quantity and who is paying for carriage. You may request a carrier box subject to availability. (We provide boxes for all pigeons).

Please note we do not accept payments online or over the phone, carriage can be paid at the door in cash or via the bank if requested and if applicable.

Please note: We can no longer take orders via text, Facebook or voicemail.

When will my collection/delivery take place?

We do collections and deliveries every week. We operate on a next day service basis.

Our pickup and delivery days are Tuesdays-Fridays and work as follows:

If you have a collection from London or the South Coast regions, we aim to collect these on a Tuesday and deliver on a Wednesday.

If you have a delivery going into London, we aim to collect these on a Thursday and deliver on Friday.

All other areas are collected on a Wednesday and delivered on a Thursday.

Aberdeen and Inverness are not weekly, please speak to the office before making a booking for these areas.

These delivery days may be subject to change during peak season and busy periods. We will contact you directly if there are any changes to your job.

*Please note that in the rare event your birds have been collected and are unable to be delivered next day due to unforeseen circumstances such as a driver breakdown, we are able to keep the birds in our holding area pens and they will be fed on corn and water and cared for by pigeon fanciers.

When will I get a time slot?

We will always call you the day before a collection or delivery takes place.

You will receive a call with a 2-hour time slot.

If you cannot answer the phone, we will always leave a voice message or text message asking you to confirm receipt of this, if you for whatever reason don’t reply, we can’t always guarantee your booking as we would not send a driver to an address if unsure if a customer is going to be there.

(We cannot give you an immediate timeslot when you make a booking as all jobs are entered into our system on Monday at 4pm when orders are closed which generates the times for the jobs in your area.)

Please be assured that we will call you the day before, please do not call us asking for your time before your allotted collection/delivery day. We have a large volume of customers to contact and by calling us to ask, this can delay us.

What if I am not available on the day?

You will need to make sure you are available on the day for your collection or delivery.

The only alternatives are to rebook for the following week, or you can discuss with the office during your timeslot telephone call other arrangements within reason.

Such as, leaving with a neighbour, in a loft/shed or you can request a 30-minute call from the driver if you are at work to give you time to get back for example.

This is why we strongly advise you answer the call for your time slot confirmation in case any issues arise.

How do I pay?

We do not accept payments online or over the phone. Payment can be made at the door in cash on collection or delivery (please state which end is paying upon on booking).

We accept payment via bank transfer and details can be given on request.

Some jobs we may ask for a deposit to secure a slot, in this case will we contact you directly.

How much does it cost?

Prices vary depending on the areas and what is being transported.

Prices – England and Wales

Pigeons	Up to 12 birds	£55
Within M25 areas	Up to 12 birds	£60
Extra birds	Per bird	£2
Finches, parrots, canaries, budgies	1 box	£55
Within M25 areas	1 box	£60
Extra box	Per box	£10
Chickens	1 box	£70
Extra box	Per box	£10
Geese	1 Box	£70 -£75 (same price for Scotland)
Extra Box	Per Box	£10
Owls & Hawks	1 box	£75 (same price for Scotland)
Extra Box	Per Box	£10
Guinea pigs, rabbits, ferrets, hedgehogs, mice & rats	1 box	£65
Extra box	Per box	£10
Lizards & Tortoises	1 Box	£65 (Same price for Scotland)
Extra box	Per box	£10
Puppies & kittens	Price on request. Same day service.

Prices - Scotland & Aberdeen

Pigeons	Up to 12 birds	£60
Extra birds	Per bird	£2
Aberdeen	Up to 12 birds	£75
Finches, parrots, canaries, budgies	1 box	£60
Extra box	Per box	£10
Aberdeen	Per box	£75
Chickens	1 box	£70
Extra box	Per box	£10
Aberdeen	Per box	£75
Guinea pigs, rabbits, hedgehogs, mice, rats, ferrets	1 box	£65
Aberdeen	Per box	£75
Owls & Hawks	1 Box	£75
Extra box	Per Box	£10
Puppies & Kittens	Price on request. Same day service.

Prices for Ireland are for pigeons only and start at £90 for up to 9 birds and £10 per bird thereafter. Please contact for further information.

Cancellations

If you need to make a cancellation, you need to do it at the earliest possible convenience.

We understand that birds can escape, or animals get sick so cannot travel that week.

Please call the office to cancel, if it is out of working hours, please message or email and we will confirm when we have received the cancellation. You will not be charged if cancelled before the driver gets to your address.

Please note, that if you do not let us know of a cancellation and the driver arrives at your address, you will still be charged our carriage fee. If this is not paid, it will trigger our debt recovery enforcement until payment is made.

Highflyers may have to occasionally cancel your job, if this happens we will contact you to explain and rebook.

Reasons for this may vary and can be due to weather (extreme heat), non-payment, or logistically the job cannot be done that week due to the animal being in transit for an excessive amount of time which will be of detriment to its welfare, in this case we would move the job into the following week.

Other reasons for cancelations can be due to vehicle breakdowns or driver illness, we will inform you as soon as possible in this instance.

Highflyers have the right to cancel any job at our discretion.

Do you provide boxes?

Pigeons – we supply all boxes at no extra charge.

*Please note young birds are this year’s birds, they need to be 24 days old minimum and fit into a ‘Squeaker’ box, which can carry up to 6 young birds. ‘Old’ birds have one ‘single’ box per bird.

Finches, budgies, canaries, small birds – We can supply a box on request during booking which are subject to availability during busy seasons. The boxes need to be returned to the driver upon delivery. No extra charge.

Chickens and other poultry – Chickens must be boxed correctly by sender; we do not provide boxes for chickens. Boxes should be approx. 2ft sq. and have chicken wire secured on top of the box. The box should include a water facility and food.

Owls – sender to supply own box with everything needed for the journey.

Hawks – must be boxed correctly and securely by the sender, we do not handle hawks. Anything needed for the journey to be included in the box.

Rabbits, Guinea Pigs etc. – Carriers must be requested on booking and subject to availability, sender to supply everything needed for journey: food, bedding etc. No extra charge for carriers. Needs to be returned to driver on delivery.

Hedgehogs – sender to supply everything needed for journey, we can provide a cat carrier on booking subject to availability at no extra charge. Needs to be returned to driver on delivery.

Lizards, tortoises – sender to box with everything needed for journey. Staff do not handle these reptiles.

Peacocks – to be boxed correctly by sender, box needs to be big enough and include food water and bedding. No extremely large carriers as this will incur an extra charge.

Parrots/exotic birds – recommended to travel in a cat carrier, we can provide a carrier at no extra charge subject to availability when requested on booking. Sender to provide everything needed for journey. If travelling in a cage, it must be no bigger than 3ft.

Ferrets – Ferrets need to be boxed securely and tie strapped closed with no chance of escape. Carriers can be provided at no extra cost, subject to availability and returned to driver upon delivery.

Cages – We do not transport anything in a large cage. If you require transport of a cage, it must be flat packed and will incur an additional charge where costs will be given at the time of booking when cage dimensions are submitted.

Important please read:

The driver has every right to refuse a collection if the animals/birds are not boxed up correctly and safely. This is for the welfare the animals/birds when they are in transit.

The driver will contact the office of any occurrences and you will still be charged for carriage.

Do you deliver to Scotland and Ireland?

We cover mainland Scotland with some exceptions; we only go as far as Aberdeen or Inverness every few weeks. We do not cover certain PH postcodes, for these areas you need to call us before booking to discuss.

If you live in these areas there is an option to drive down and meet a driver further down into Scotland which we can arrange with you if it is not week we are going up there.

If you book in for Aberdeen or Inverness we will contact you to let you know when we are next going up that far.

Collections and deliveries for Scotland are Wednesday pick up and Thursday delivery, we will contact you if this changes.

Ireland birds are picked up from London and surrounding areas on a Tuesday, from Wales on a Wednesday and all other areas on a Thursday. They will be delivered to Belfast Docks on a Saturday between 6:30-7am for the receiver to collect. We go no further into Ireland.

Do you provide a same day service?

Yes, however this is subject to availability and prices will increase and vary depending on details. Prices on request, contact us to discuss.

Occasionally, your booking may get collected and delivered on the same day at no increase in price if it can be done on the same run with the same driver. We will always contact you in these circumstances.

Do you deliver outside of the U.K?

No, we only deliver in mainland England*, Wales and certain areas of Scotland, and to Belfast Docks in Ireland only.

*Arrangments can be made for Isle of Wight where birds can be delivered to the hovercraft port at Southsea. Contact before booking.

Opening Hours

We are open 365* days of the year!

*Excluding Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

We pick up and deliver each week*

*Except for Christmas week, however we are open for bookings during that period.

Our opening times are:

Thursday 10am – 4pm (for bookings)

Friday 10am – 4pm (for bookings)

Saturday 10am – 4pm (for bookings)